In 2005,Kennedy defeated Democratic primary opponent Paul Sullivan by a vote of 65% to 35%.[8] He won 72% of the vote in the general election against his Republican opponent,Julieanne Mazurkiewicz.[9]
In 2007,Kennedy ran unopposed for a second full term to the Erie County Legislature.[10]
New York State Senate
Elections
2010
In 2010,Kennedy challenged incumbent William Stachowski for the Democratic nomination for the 58th district in the New York State Senate.[11] Kennedy also earned the endorsement of the Conservative Party,[12] which had previously supported Stachowski.[13] Stachowski was one of eight Democratic state senators who had voted against a bill allowing same-sex marriage in New York,while Kennedy supported it,earning him the backing of gay rights organizations in the primary.[14][15] Kennedy ultimately defeated Stachowski by a margin of 63% to 26%.[16] amid a wave of anti-incumbent voter sentiment.[12] Stachowski remained on the ballot on the Independence Party and Working Families Party lines.[17]
In the 2010 general election,Kennedy defeated Republican Assemblyman Jack Quinn III,[18] gaining 47% of the vote to Quinn's 45%. The remaining votes went to Stachowski.[19]
2012
Seeking reelection in 2012,Kennedy won a primary challenge from Democrat Betty Jean Grant,prevailing by 156 votes.[20] The closeness of the election prompted a protracted court battle heard by Justice Joseph R. Glownia of the State Supreme Court.[21] Kennedy ran uncontested in the November 2012 general election and was re-elected.[22]
2014
In 2014,Kennedy defeated Grant in a Democratic primary rematch,receiving 16,660 votes (60.2%) to Grant's 10,997 votes (39.8%).[23] The race received much attention,with campaign spending by the candidates and outside groups surpassing $1 million.[24] Kennedy received the backing of the New York State United Teachers and realtors,while Grant received the Erie County Democratic Committee endorsement[25] and help from the Independent Democratic Conference,a breakaway group of state Senate Democrats who sided with Republicans in the Senate.[24] Kennedy's base of support was South Buffalo,Lackawanna,and Cheektowaga,while Grant's base of support was Buffalo's East Side.[26]
In the November 2014 general election,Kennedy (who ran on the Democratic,Working Families,and Independence ballot lines) defeated Ricky T. Donovan,Sr. (who ran on the Republican and Conservative ballot lines). Out of 59,094 total votes,Kennedy received 42,278 (71.5%),while Donovan received 11,973 (20.3%).[27]
2016
In the 2016 general election,Kennedy ran unopposed on the Democratic,Working Families,Independence,and Women's Equality ballot lines and received 89,650 votes.[28]
2018
In 2018,Kennedy defeated Shaqurah Zachery in a Democratic primary,winning 23,640 (76.6%) of the vote.[29] He ran unopposed in the general election.[30]
Tenure
Kennedy speaking on a resolution to remember the victims of the 2022 Buffalo shooting on May 10,2023
2011–2018
In 2011,Kennedy voted in favor of the Marriage Equality Act,which legalized same-sex marriage in New York.[31][32] Kennedy lost the support of the Conservative Party in 2012 following his vote on the marriage issue.[33]
Also in 2011,Kennedy authored Jay-J's Law,which sought to stiffen penalties for repeat child abusers by increasing the look back period in which someone can be charged with aggravated assault. The bill was named after Jay-J Bolvin,a young boy who suffered 11 fractured bones,a severe seizure disorder and developmental delays as a result of a severe beating from his father,who had previously been convicted of assaulting one of his other sons. The bill was passed by the legislature and later signed into law by Governor Andrew Cuomo in July 2013.[34]
In 2012,Kennedy introduced a package of four bills to combat the opioid epidemic in New York. One of the bills would create a prescription-monitoring system for physicians and pharmacists to track the prescription of narcotic painkillers. This proposal was made by New York State Attorney GeneralEric Schneiderman.[35]
Kennedy ran for State Senate in 2010 as a pro-life candidate.[36] In 2013,Kennedy cast a procedural vote for the tenth point of Gov. Andrew Cuomo's Women's Equality Act,which would have expanded abortion rights in New York. In February 2014,Kennedy acknowledged that his position on abortion had "evolved" and that he supported the tenth point of the Women's Equality Act;he added,"'I believe at the end of the day that a woman has to be able to make a decision upon her health,her life and her family that is in her best interests and their best interests'". Pro-choice groups praised his shift on the issue,[33] while Bishop Richard Malone of the Buffalo diocese of the Roman Catholic Church criticized him for it.[37] In 2019,Kennedy voted in favor of the Reproductive Health Act,[38] which was described by The Buffalo News as "the most sweeping set of protections to the state’s abortion laws in 49 years".[39]
In 2013,Kennedy co-sponsored legislation to increase the state minimum wage to $9 an hour,and automatically adjust the minimum wage to account for cost-of-living increases.[40]
In May 2013,Kennedy introduced a Jackie's Law into the Senate,which was prompted by the death of West Seneca woman Jackie Wisniewski,who was killed after being stalked by a former boyfriend using a GPS tracking device on her car. Kennedy's bill updated New York's stalking statutes by allowing police to pursue criminal charges against those who use electronic tracking devices to stalk victims. Assemblywoman Crystal Peoples-Stokes sponsored companion legislation in the Assembly. Governor Andrew Cuomo signed the bill into law in July 2014.[41]
In 2014,Kennedy introduced legislation that would limit the state's legal immunity for claims for damages. The legislation would specifically amend Section 58 of the State Highway Law,which immunizes the state from "liability for damages arising from defects in its highways" during cold-weather months. The bill proposed by Kennedy "would allow motorists to seek damages from the state for 'egregious or unreasonable' defects year-round or when it was given prior notice of a defect."[42] State Assemblyman Thomas J. Abinanti filed companion legislation in the State Assembly.[42]
Kennedy has been a supporter of the legalization of mixed martial arts (MMA) in New York,which at the time was the only U.S. state to bar MMA events.[43] Kennedy argued that MMA could economically benefit Western New York,with events at First Niagara Center in Buffalo benefiting local businesses.[44] The legal status of MMA had been a state political issue for years;the state Senate passed legalization legislation seven times over six years,but the bills were not taken up by the State Assembly. Kennedy expressed disappointment at the failure to pass the legislation in 2015,[43] and welcomed passage of MMA legislation in 2016.[44]
In 2017,Kennedy supported legalizing vehicle for hire companies in all areas of New York State.[45]
2019−2024
Kennedy speaking at the launch of voluntary COVID-19 screening program for MTA employees on October 27,2020
When the Democratic Party won the majority in the State Senate in 2018,Kennedy was appointed chair of the New York State Senate Transportation,Infrastructure,and Capital Investment Committee.[46] He also served on the Finance,Rules,Energy &Telecommunications,Insurance,Banks,and Social Services Committees.[5]
In 2019,Kennedy convened a Transportation Committee hearing about Limousine Safety,where families of victims of the Schoharie County and Suffolk County limousine crashes testified.[48] Subsequently,the New York State Senate passed a package of bills designed to improve bus and limousine safety.[49]
Also in his first year as chairman of the Transportation Committee,Kennedy authored legislation that became law allowing school districts to install cameras on the back of school buses to catch vehicles illegally and dangerously passing stopped buses.[50]
During his tenure as Transportation Committee chair,he secured historic investments in local roads and bridges,through the CHIPS,PAVE NY and BRIDGE NY programs.[51]
In 2020,Kennedy passed legislation that became law to allow striking workers to collect unemployment insurance after two weeks,when striking workers previously had to wait seven weeks prior to filing for unemployment.[52]
In 2022,after the racist shooting at Tops grocery store in Buffalo,Kennedy supported a "landmark legislative package to immediately strengthen the state's gun laws,close critical loopholes exposed by shooters in Buffalo and Uvalde and protect New Yorkers from the scourge of gun violence that continues to infect our nation and endanger our communities."[53]
On November 14, 2023, Kennedy announced that he would run for the soon-to-be vacated congressional seat held at the time by Brian Higgins.[54] He won the election on April 30, 2024, defeating Republican nominee Gary Dickson.[55] Kennedy received 68.6% of the vote to Dickson's 31.3%.[56]
2024
Kennedy was sworn into the U.S. House of Representatives on May 6, 2024.[57]
The first bill Kennedy cosponsored was H.R. 2530, the Nurse Staffing Standards for Patient Safety and Quality Care Act. In his first floor speech, he highlighted the need for safe staffing nurse-to-patient ratios.[58]
On the second anniversary of the racist shooting at Tops grocery store in Buffalo, Kennedy honored the victims in a 30-minute special order proceeding where he was joined by Rep. Jim Clyburn.[59] He also introduced legislation with Rep. Grace Meng to ban the sale of enhanced body armor, which was used by the shooter in Buffalo.[60]
Personal life
Kennedy lives in Buffalo with his wife Katie and their three children.[6]
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